NYPD details extensive Pride March security plan

NYC Pride event director Julian Sanjivan speaks to the press on Friday while announcing a new alternative parade route for the NYC Gay Pride Parade to minimize overcrowding. (Shawn Inglima for New York Daily News)

Heavy security and a new route are on tap for Sunday's Pride March in lower Manhattan, officials said.

Thousands of uniformed and plainclothes police officers will patrol the 49th edition of the famed parade, and 100 blocker trucks will be stationed at intersections along the route.

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The new alternative parade route map for the NYC Gay Pride Parade. (New York Daily News)

"We have a comprehensive security plan in place to protect the safety of everyone who attends the parade," Chief of Patrol Rodney Harrison said. "We have no active threats toward the march at this time."

A moment of silence will take place at 11:58 a.m. outside the historic Stonewall Inn on Christopher St. The Stonewall Inn is where heavy-handed police raids in 1969 sparked a violent protest credited with setting the foundation for the gay rights movement.

Two minutes later, at noon, the parade will begin, with 46,000 participants. More than 2 million people are expected to attend.

The parade will start at 16th St. and 7th Ave., travel downtown on 7th Ave., then move east on Christopher St. and West St., then north on 5th Ave. to 29th St.

Moving the parade from 5th Ave. to 7th Ave. will give more viewing room for spectators, said Deputy Chief James Kehoe, executive officer of Patrol Borough Manhattan South.

Police officials and parade organizers said the route change was made to help prepare for the much larger WorldPride march coming to the city in 2019. An estimated 5 million to 6 million people are expected to attend that event, which will mark the 50th anniversary year of the Stonewall uprising.

The NYPD Gay Pride caravan is pictured at a press conference on Friday. (Shawn Inglima for New York Daily News)

"At a time when many in our community feel our progress, our movement and our history is being erased, the Gay Officers Action League supports the rights of all participants to express themselves freely," said Brian Downey, President of the Gay Officers Action League. "Whether you are there to resist, to celebrate or a little of both, we wish everyone a safe and happy Pride."

The NYPD encourages anyone who may see something that appears to be suspicious to find a police officer, call 911, or call the terrorism tip line at 1-888-NYC-SAFE.